Star Wars Vs Lord of the Rings Comparison Essay

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Star Wars and The Lord of the Rings



Star Wars (1977) directed by George Lucas and The Lord of the Rings (2001) directed by Peter Jackson are two films of the fantasy genre. Star Wars is one of the AFI’s top picks for greatest classic films. Lord of the Rings, on the other hand, is a modern popular fantasy film. This paper will provide a narrative analysis, cultural and historical analysis, and close film analysis of these two films by comparing and contrasting them.



Narrative Analysis



Star Wars was released in 1977, produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by 20th Century Fox. The Lord of the Rings was released in 2001, produced by WingNut Films and the Saul Zaentz Company and distributed by New Line Cinema. George Lucas directed the former, Peter Jackson the latter. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Alec Guinness stared in Star Wars. Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Viggo Mortensen and Orlando Bloom starred in The Lord of the Rings. Each is the first film in a trilogy.



Both films are epics that explore themes of duty, team work, vocation, honor, the heroics of the underdog, and the evil of the totalitarian regime which the underdogs oppose. The underdogs in both films represent life, virtuous characters, while the evil antagonists represent greed, selfishness, mercilessness, oppression, and death. The plot of Star Wars focuses on Luke Skywalker (played by Hamill), who receive a message from a princess and sets off to deliver the message only to get wrapped up in an intergalactic battle that he eventually helps to win for the underdogs. The plot of The Lord of the Rings is similar in that it focuses on Frodo, who receives a magic ring that is sought by an evil sorcerer; Frodo must deliver the ring to Mt. Doom in order to crush the evil and save his friends and all existence. The main characters are divided between good, evil and uncertain. In Star Wars, Han Solo (played by Ford) is the character of uncertain moral qualities who proves himself good in the end by helping Luke to blow up the Death Star. In The Lord of the Rings, the character arcs of the main characters plays out more dramatically over the course of the three films and thus are not fully developed in the first film alone.

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The narrative pattern is similar in that a conflict is presented, the heroes meet, embark on a plan to save the day, and accomplish their plan. The status quo is not really restored in the end because in Star Wars the underdogs are oppressed and by the end they are elevated. In Lord of the Rings, there is no conclusion in the first film but rather a pause in the action that leaves the audience in suspense about what is going to happen to the heroes as their fellowship disintegrates. The heroes appeal to the audience by virtue of their masculine and feminine qualities and the classic principles of theatre—clarity, simplicity, elegance, order, economy and symmetry—are expressed in both films through the scores written for the films, the plot points, and the balance of action with drama and humor.



Cultural and Historical Analysis



Regarding America’s past, Star Wars speaks to the two opposing voices in America’s history—the Imperialists and the Isolationists or humanists. The Imperialist agenda is represented by the Dark Side (the Empire) and the Isolationists or humanists are represented by the Jedi and the Princess’s team. In Lord of the Rings, America’s past is represented idyllically—the Shire is a symbol of the olden times and Mordor represents Industrialization and cruelty of totalitarian systems.



Both of these films suggest that America was better off when it had a sense of spirituality and confidence in itself. Today’s America seems to be represented by the evil totalitarian systems in both films where dehumanization is everywhere—from the orcs to the inhuman Gollum to Darth Vader who hides his humanity behind a mask.



Close Film Analysis



The scene in Star Wars where the heroes (Luke, Han and Leia) are trapped in the trash compactor and the robots must short the ship’s circuits to save them provides a min-look at the film overall. The heroes are outgunned and outnumbered….....

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